Spider Kingdom fan expansion concept

Inspired in equal parts by Cataclysm, Wrath, various wow fan works, and my own not inconsiderable insanity, I've created a fan expansion for World of Warcraft:

I've been using WoWpedia's fan fiction section to set up pages related to all the dungeon, storyline, and zone ideas I've come up with, and I'll be organizing them together into what will hopefully become a self-contained fan expansion wiki page.

It started out as a raid idea, grew into a zone, and has since blossomed out of control into what it is now, which is still growing (Old Gods help me). The concept is in two parts - The first centers around the reshaping of Northrend due to the Cataclysm and the death of the previous Lich King, Arthas. The second part will involve exploring the depths of Azeroth's underworld, the Spider Kingdom of Azjol-Nerub and beyond.

There's a lot of talky, so I'll be trying to break it up over time with some artwork - maps, characters, monsters, and so forth.

*Level cap raised to 94 - the Path of War marches on...
*New high level quest-chain in Shadow Web Caverns to unlock the Azj'Aqir Worldgate that leads to a new zone: Azj'Aqir, the Shattered Empire.
*New zone unlocked - Azj'Aqir, the Shattered Empire. It is separated into three sub-regions - Plateau of Ur'Leng, Lost Realm of Azj, and Black Sands of Zhun.
*Many new level 93 and 94 quest-chains have been added. Discover the fate of Brann Bronzebeard, learn the origins of the aqir and their new plans for conquest, uncover the secret of how the Old Gods first came to Azeroth, and more.
*Three new level 94 dungeons have been found.
*Three new level 94 raids have been unlocked.

*Level cap raised to 95 - the Path of War marches on...
*New high level quest-chain in Crystalsong Forest that leads to a new zone: Shadowcrown Glacier.
*New zone unlocked - Shadowcrown Glacier. It is separated into three large sub-regions - The Vile Cascade, the Sea of Saronite, and Dreadstorm City.
*Many new level 94 and 95 quest-chains have been added. Battle the dread iron dwarves and their fiendish creations, stop Angerboda from creating a new Scourge, and battle the Malevolence and his servants.
*Three new level 95 scenarios have been revealed.
*Three new level 95 dungeons have been discovered.
*Three new level 95 raids have been unlocked.

*The Path of War marches on. Players can now unlock level 95 Elite status, awarding new bonuses to further empower their characters.
*New zone unlocked - the Lunar Vale. Explore Azeroth's moon and the secrets it holds.
*New high level quest-chains unlocked throughout Northrend and the Underworld. Battle the forces of the Azj'Aqir Resurgence. Explore the secrets of the universe hidden in Algalon's Observatory on the moon. Thwart the Infinite Dragonflight and their vile scheme to unravel time itself. Topple the King of Darkness, the ultimate champion of the Old Gods. Stop the Unspoken, the goddess of the Spider Kingdom, from returning to Azeroth to wreak havoc.
*Three new level 95 Elite dungeons have been found.
* Three new level 95 Elite raids have been unlocked.

Part 1 of 6 - Rebirth of the Spider Kingdom ( The events of patch X.0 )

While the world reeled from the devastation of the Cataclysm, and the Alliance and the Horde struggled for supremacy in the lands to the south, a new and terrible threat bloomed in the darkness beneath the frozen wastes of Northrend.

Nerubian Newbreed

The nerubian race, having long teetered on the brink of extinction, rose up from the darkness beneath the world in a vast swarm, striking at all the kingdoms and peoples of the surface. The ranks of their armies swollen with a new breed of warrior, stronger and more monstrous than any nerubian seen before, the legions of Azjol-Nerub seemed an unstoppable menace.

It was only the forces of Doorward, a brotherhood of fearless defenders made up of all the races of the world, who stood against the threat of the nerubian Newbreed. Calling upon champions from the Alliance and the Horde, the defenders of Azeroth fought their path to the very throne of the Spider Queen Nezar'kali, mother of the Newbreed, and struck her down.

Baelgun Flamebeard - Leader of Doorward

In the heart of the Spider Kingdom, the terrible truth behind the rebirth of the nerubian race was revealed - Nezar'kali's monstrous children had been fathered by one of the ancient aqir, the progenitor race that gave rise to all of the insect-people of Azeroth. The aqir master-minded the birth of the Newbreed and the rise of the Spider Kingdom as only the latest step in a millennia-spanning scheme to bring about the return of their dominance of Azeroth.

And despite the death of Nezar'kali, the diabolical plan of the aqir continues...

While the forces of Doorward clashed with the legions of the Spider Kingdom, the Twilight Cult under the command of the night elf sorcerer Xarosan put their own schemes into action.

Attacking the portions of Icecrown Citadel that extended down into the underworld, Xarosan's servants seized two significant artifacts from the depths of the Lich King's lair - the necropolis Malykriss, a floating fortress made entirely of saronite, and a casket of black ice taken from the most guarded of the Lich King's armory vaults.

With Malykriss under his control, Xarosan launched an all-out assault upon the magical city of Dalaran, hoping to secure dominance of Northrend's skies and capture the power of the city for his own uses. At the height of the conflict, Xarosan revealed the contents of his second prize, the casket of black ice. Using a dark ritual fueled by nerubian sorcery, Xarosan shattered the casket and unveiled what lay within - the corpse of Arthas Menethil, the previous Lich King.

Reanimating Arthas' corpse with the nerubian ritual, Xarosan intended to use him as a secret weapon against the defenders of Dalaran. Only the sudden appearance of the Wyrmrest Accord dragonflights and heroes from the Alliance and the Horde foiled Xarosan's schemes. Xarosan and the seemingly mindless corpse of Arthas were left trapped on Malykriss as the saronite necropolis plummeted from the sky, crashing deep into the icy hills of the Storm Peaks and burying itself beneath a mountain of ice.

With the death of the Spider Queen in Northrend, the Newbreed and their allies retreated entirely from Azjol-Nerub, traveling through an ancient aqir-constructed waygate located deep in the underworld. Ever one to explore the most dangerous reaches of Azeroth, Brann Bronzebeard braved the dangers of the anciene nerubian cities and activated the waygate, flinging himself mystically across vast distances.

The Doorward forces that followed after Brann discovered that the waygate led to the ancient birth-place of all the insect races of Azeroth - the long lost land of Azj'Aqir, empire of the aqir.

In the ruins of the once mighty empire, Brann and his allies discovered the history of the aqir - when their empire collapsed in ancient times, legions of aqir had been sent to the four corners of the world to establish new kingdoms. In the north, the nerubians founded Azjol-Nerub. In the west was forged Ahn'Qiraj, kingdom of the qiraji. The empire of the mantid was raised to the south.

A fourth legion of aqir was sent to the east, but the waygate transporting them failed - the aqir became lost between dimensions, cast into a plane of infinite nothingness known as the Deep Void. Their bodies perished, but their spirits endured, writhing with hatred for the world that had cast them out.

For millennia, the aqir spirits in the Deep Void waited for an opportunity to return to Azeroth. The Cataclysm weakened the barriers separating the material world from the Deep Void, and now the aqir there work their influence upon their descendants, manipulating the nerubians and their allies to bring about the aqir's return.

The pawns of the aqir have paved the way for their triumphant return to Azeroth. The nerubian Newbreed, imbued with the blood of the aqir emperor Valthraxx, are the perfect vessels for the aqir spirits trapped in the Deep Void. As more and more aqir are called forth to inhabit their new flesh, the barrier keeping the Deep Void from spilling into Azeroth weakens.

The Twilight Cult under the leadership of Xarosan have allied themselves with the aqir. For the aqir and the forces of Twilight are both followers of the Old Gods, and one of the malefic beings dwells in the infinite darkness of the Deep Void. The aqir spirits there are in thrall to this entity, the Old God of Silence, She Who Must Not Be Named - the Unspoken.

When the walls of the Deep Void fall and the aqir erupt back into the world, their god will rise with them.

Part 5 / 6 - The King of Darkness ( The events of patch X.3 )

The time has come. The aqir have created a fortress in the darkness of Azeroth's underworld, a beachead in their campaign to escape the Deep Void and conquer the world once again. Forged of the undying flesh of the Old God Yogg-Saron, this fortress contains a rift to the Deep Void at its heart, where the aqir and their patron Goddess will make their entry into Azeroth.

Only one final task remains before the victory of the Unspoken is assured. The creation of the ultimate champion of the Old Gods, a warrior who will crack open the last of the barriers on the Deep Void and allow its horrors to overwhelm the world.

The King of Darkness.

Part 6 / 6 - Prophecy of the Unspoken ( The events of patch X.3 )

The prophecy of the Unspoken has come to pass.

At the prophecy's dawn, even death shall die
The Usurpers' eye will turn from the world
There will come a Shattering, heralding their return
The Usurpers' protection shall fail, rotten from within
The Vessel shall be made ready, tempered twofold by death
The Conduit will be brought forth, forged of the black blood of death
From a thousand faces, one will be chosen
Death will rise
Silence will fall
All shall be extinguished

The King of Darkness has been crowned, and he is Death. The fiend of a thousand faces now wears one - the shell of Arthas Menethil, tempered by the power of the Lich King, the only fit mortal vessel for an Old God to inhabit.

Yogg-Saron, the Old God of Death, is now the King of Darkness. He will bring forth the final silence.

For how could the greatest champion of the Old Gods be any other than one of their own?

One of the twin bear ancients, Ursol was also the victim of a misguided revival attempt by the furbolg of Northrend. Like his brother Ursoc, Ursol was revived as a corrupted, rotting horror, a pawn of the Old Gods.

Aqir Wraith

As dark and inhuman as the nerubians are, their ancient aqir ancestors were even moreso. Their unquiet phantoms still haunt the most ancient parts of the Spider Kingdom, temples and places of worship long sinced abandoned by the nerubians, even before their defeat by the Scourge. Bloated with ectoplasmic bulk, these ragged shades are surrounded by a cloud of swarming phantasmal flies. Glaring from within their heavy shrouds are a cluster of glowing eyes. Twisted by millennia of undeath, their spectral forms bear little to no resemblance of their previous living bodies.

Croojer

A curious race of insectile humanoids, possibly a bizarre and distant offshoot of the aqir. Slightly smaller than the average dwarf, they are adept tunnelers and scavengers, and will construct cunning traps and pitfalls in order to discourage attackers and capture prey. Their four upper limbs are quite dextrous and they are capable of carrying out multiple tasks simultaneously. When exposed, they will often curl themselves into armored balls and bounce around at rapid speeds, relying on their thick shells to protect them and crush their enemies.

Duggum

Mole-like humanoids who have survived the underworld of Northrend for centuries. They were born from the shed blood of a mighty mole ancient who fought against the Burning Legion 10,000 years ago. The ancient slew many demons before it was finally slain in turn, and its blood flowed into the caverns and tunnels of the land that would become Northrend. There it gave rise to the duggum, who formed a close-knit society of many clan-families that has survived since the time of the Sundering.

Hahn'tan

A race of bat people who dwell in the caverns of Northrend's underworld. Many of their number were slain by the undead Scourge and turned into the monstrous, animalistic gargoyles. The survivors remain in hiding and are distrustful of outsiders. The hahn'tan share the gargoyles' natural ability to transform their hides into durable living stone. Their is much speculation regarding their origins, whether they are born from an animal demigod, or if they are a titan progenitor race.

Nerubian Infiltrator

These frightening creatures are seemingly related to the nerubians of Azjol-Nerub. Although information about the nerubians and their various sub-species and servant creatures is scarce, even the most learned scholar of nerubian lore has never found mention of these beings anywhere in any records recovered from the Spider Kingdom. Infiltrators are roughly humanoid in proportion, with four more arachnoid-like limbs used for fighting. They are possessed of a nerubian's alien intelligence and, true to their name, are capable of great stealth, often disguising themselves with heavy robes to pass among humans or forsaken undetected.

When uncovered, Infiltrators will fight to the death, tearing at their enemies with their teeth and talons. To date, no Infiltrator has allowed itself to be taken alive. It is still a mystery as to what the Infiltrators hope to accomplish by sneaking into the cities of the surface world. Infiltrators have been sighted as far away as Valiance Keep and Blightbrace Point, and the Kirin Tor believe that a group of the creatures has infiltrated Dalaran itself.

Undying Tendrils

Deep beneath the frozen surface of Northrend lies the Old God, Yogg-Saron, imprisoned an eternity ago by the titans. The dark entity attempted to break free of his chains at Ulduar, the ancient titan city, but his schemes were foiled by agents of the Alliance and the Horde, who fought their way into the prison of the Old God itself, and struck it down.

But Yogg-Saron's gigantic corpse is still a danger to the lands of Northrend. Without a mind to control it's alien biology, the vast carcass has begun to grow and mutate even as it rots, sending decaying tendrils of unnatural flesh growing up through the earth like weeds. These Undying Tendrils breach the surface deep in caves and cold lakes, growing ever upwards towards the world that Yogg-Saron had sought to remade. The Tendrils are disgusting, rotting things, their withering skin bloated with blisters of foul, liquified saronite, the Old God's poisonous black blood.

Nerubian Newbreed

The recent uprising of nerubians in Northrend has provided disturbing new information to scholars of the Spider Kingdom. While at first glance the difference between one nerubian and another might not be apparent, there are some startling differences between the older nerubians cataloged and the newer creatures carrying out recent attacks. The more recently encountered nerubians are larger and more muscular, their carapace noticeable more durable. Their multiple eyes are arranged in a different configuration, giving them superior eyesight and visual acuity. Strangely, their brain-case is much smaller, meaning these nerubians are far less intelligent than specimens encountered in the past.

The most startling piece of information is perhaps the most troubling - the new nerubians launching attacks all across Northrend are only a few years old, far younger than should be possible given previous knowledge of nerubian maturation. If this new generation of nerubians are capable of reproducing and maturing with such frightening speed, the once near-extinct nerubian species may soon grow far greater in number than any other race on Azeroth.

might i suggest that you can choose between a Scarab race and a Spider race? spiders would resemble something like a human but fused with spider-like features. Scarabs would resemble Dreanei but have scarab features.

yes the explanations are lazy but that because I'm tired. so let try to add to this shall we?

might i suggest that you can choose between a Scarab race and a Spider race? spiders would resemble something like a human but fused with spider-like features. Scarabs would resemble Dreanei but have scarab features.

yes the explanations are lazy but that because I'm tired. so let try to add to this shall we?

I've always thought The Collectors would fit a "Nerubian" kind of race perfectly. As for the idea of the expansion as a whole, I would love it, if only because I really really wanted the underground Azjol'Nerub zone in LK instead of the cheap instance we got

oh my god I love this and need more hnngngggggg
Also, I read the wiki page a bit, and think you should consider.. not all the trolls focal points of worship are dead. You better do something with that fucking huge snake in gundrak

Y'know I really love this idea. I was highly disappointed that there was never a full AN zone put in, nor much explanation about the Nerubians, their relationship to the Old Gods, and the Forgotten One.

I never thought about what would happen to the Vrykul after the fall of the Lich King. it seems ridiculous that they'd all be murdered. Maybe some of them (that hadn't joined this newly risen Angerboda) are put in internment camps like the orcs were (Maybe explaining some of the Alliance's debt, Westfall homeless, etc.).

Also, I like the idea behind The Wound of the World. Should there be another zone at the very bottom? Waaaaaaay deep down there, kind of like a world beneath the underworld full of twisted creations of the Old Gods. =)